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sweet-evie · 3 years

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I really felt annoyed on that kallen and lelouch scene where kallen landed on top of him in a sense where both has something to go back after the battle i mean lelouch was asking her to go back with him, I just felt where would c.c. be after the battle, will she be forgotten after it? Will it be like okay c.c. your job here is done you may go and we will go back to our own ordinary lives, will lelouch just let her go if she decided to go....lol and the list go on, (this is me speaking beyond shipping and as a c.c. enthusiast) and if i didn't know that the director is pushing c.c. and lelouch to each other i will forever hate the series cuz c.c. deserves the best (i mean its very obvious with the official arts and scenes and i remember reading something about it before) (can we also assume that c.c. got jealous on that part too lol what would happen if c.c. didn't speak about tabasco will they kiss? lol) I also really have a love hate feeling w/ kallen, she is really a good pilot and i kinda ship him sometimes with suzaku, sometimes not because i love him with euphie, but really that tension whenever they are together fighting or not Idk if its their strong and badass character but they really look good and compatible with each other but then I really love her with Gino the most lol i mean if i find kallen and suzaku compatible then i find kallen and gino most compatible hahaha Its just that kallen can show that she can be weak/soft can be tired or can breakdown (and not the always strong her) with gino. (I hope you can understand this part) I love it when gino picked her up after her battle with suzaku. How I wished gino appeared more in the series, was introduce early and they had scenes more together. I sometimes dislike her cuz she is over reacting in a lot of times like she is just too much and almost in par with nina's reaction most of the times haha (i kinda dislike/hate kxl scenes in a sense too that its one sided like its mostly k and l shows no interest but sometimes it look like there is a mutual feeling between both of them(i mostly felt its one sided shen watching the movie especially the resurrection) (What can you say about their scenes?, when he put jacket to her while she was wearing bunny girl costume, the refrain scene, when she fell on top of him, when she was captured, their kiss? etc.) BUT if you look at c.c. and lelouch relationship and scenes together its just too consistent lol i just love it how lelouch always assured and pursued her from that rooftop scene after battling with Mao, if she is a witch then he'll became a warlock, when he discovered and promised her about fulfilling her true wish, when she asked him if he hated her for giving him the power of geass and about to do something if kallen did not interrupt and bonus: that resurrection scene when he decided to become L.L. (I LOVE WRITING THIS PART OF ASSURANCE AND PURSUING ABT CLUCLU, MY FAVORITE XD, pls add some if i forgot something) i also kinda agreed to that statement except c.c. part lol going around that Shirley -> Lelouch Lamperouge, Kallen -> Zero and C.C. -> Lelouch Vi Britania but doesn't C.C. knows all lelouch's persona and had been supportive and stayed with him from the very start and in whatever path he chose? 😂 I hate it that people come at c.c.'s age and that she witness lelouch grow up like, is her immortality her fault? Like people are okay for male characters of 123456790 age falling for main girls in dramas or some animes for example but not okay if its c.c. lol SORRY THIS POST IS SO LONG it was supposed to be focus only on the first part about THAT scene 🙏

Whoa~ You’re not lying, this is one hell of an ask 🤣😂😅 I read 4 topics in this xD:

Lelouch, Kallen, C.C. scene

Kallen ships (Suzaku or Gino)

Kallen x Lelouch vs C.C. x Lelouch

C.C. & Lelouch's Age-gap

Let’s go in!

Lelouch, Kallen, & C.C. Scene

(can we also assume that c.c. got jealous on that part too lol what would happen if c.c. didn't speak about tabasco will they kiss? lol)

Maybe, but who knows, to be honest. xD The whole interaction was very impulsive, considering the fact that Lelouch was still fresh off of bouncing back from his depression, which Kallen had witnessed and was at the brunt end of.

When Kallen fell on top of Lelouch, I do believe both of them were thinking about that one moment where Lelouch tried to use Kallen to forget his current circumstances. Perhaps part of Kallen wanted it, but knew it wasn’t right. So I adore her for bitch-slapping him. xD The idiot deserved it.

C.C. was just there... I’m not sure if she was jealous or not. Maybe she didn’t give a fuck xD Before I could form my own conclusions, the entire scene is interrupted again because Zero gets called out into the control room.

Kallen Ships (Suzaku vs Gino)

I agree with most of your points in this part.

Personally, in my own fics, I ship Kallen with Gino a lot because for me, Suzaku belongs with Euphemia by default.

But, I do see the chemistry and the sexual tension that could go between Suzaku and Kallen. Like maybe their fights are really just unresolved sexual tension 😂🤣

I imagine a romance between them would be very explosive, passionate, and rough. I don’t just mean this in terms of sex, I imagine their entire dynamic would swing this way too. They’re really opinionated, and they both literally fight for what they believe in, and their conviction is strong enough to rival each other’s.

Suzaku and Kallen just clash magnificently. On the other hand, Gino’s and Kallen’s personalities probably combine. They have things in common, but not too much to the point of being passionate and aggressive at the same time.

KaLulu vs CLuCLu

What can you say about their scenes?, when he put jacket to her while she was wearing bunny girl costume, the refrain scene, when she fell on top of him, when she was captured, their kiss? etc.

In that scene where he put his jacket on her, I think that’s gentlemanly of Lelouch. It’s something I expect from him considering he was born a prince, and also, he has a little sister. On a sidenote, I adore both him and Suzaku for being respectful towards the women in their circle, for the most part.

That refrain scene was a moment of grief for Lelouch and he was being erratic. I said it once or twice, I’ll say it again. I am so happy Kallen bitch-slapped him. It shows that she’s not willing to put up with bullshit, and believes that Lelouch is definitely better than that. Kudos to her, she may have slapped him to his senses. For Kallen, it was a moment of, “Please be who we need you to be.”

It was a brilliant turning point for Lelouch as well. After Nunnally was given the role of Viceroy, Lelouch, at least, realized that his war and his rebellion against Britannia wasn’t just for his sister anymore. It was for everyone he cared about too. It was for the people who counted on Zero’s idea of freedom and perhaps peace.

In summary, I made my stance clear on KaLulu on a separate post long ago. But the gist was, they may have felt romantic feelings for each other, but it was probably brief and suppressed in favor of their grander goals and all that shit that was already going down. Romance just wasn’t appropriate for Lelouch or any of the characters who had something at stake in the war.

In the end, Kallen chose Japan, and Lelouch chose Zero Requiem. That is that. 😊

BUT if you look at c.c. and lelouch relationship and scenes together its just too consistent

Lelouch & C.C.’s relationship is a slow-burn from the get-go. It’s part of the reason why it’s so appealing to me.

Let’s be honest, Lelouch doesn’t even view C.C. as human until halfway to R1, and C.C. took almost all of 2 seasons to acknowledge the fact that she cared about Lelouch.

i also kinda agreed to that statement except c.c. part lol going around that Shirley -> Lelouch Lamperouge, Kallen -> Zero and C.C. -> Lelouch Vi Britania

I understand why a lot of people like this argument. I, for one, believe there’s a grain of truth in it.

BUT in my own honest opinion, I think that is a little unfair to Kallen and Shirley. I’m sure Lelouch cared about the two of them in unique ways and perhaps chose to hide behind masks around them to protect them and to preserve his own façade. Hell, he lied to his own sister for most of the entire show because he thought it would protect her and would shield her from the horrors of the world. (It didn’t turn out well, did it? 🤣) Still, my point is, Shirley and Kallen would have been willing to understand and know Lelouch’s every mask. Lelouch himself, just didn’t let them. And it was for their own good, I believe.

So why C.C.?

If there’s anyone in the world who can understand people’s multiple points of view, it would probably be C.C... She lived through most of mankind’s history, and she’s been alive long enough to take multiple perspectives in, meet different types of people, and see lots of ridiculous shit xD Lelouch slowly becomes aware of this fact as the series progresses, and we do see him have deep conversations with her from time to time. She’s capable of being objective. She knocks some sense into him a lot, especially during the beginning. One notable example of this that I will never forget is the episode after Lelouch realized Shirley’s father died because of his actions. It showed how immature Lelouch was being and how idealistic -- thinking war only took out the bad guys in his side of the story. Point is, she knows when to chastise him and when to offer her consolation, which is part of the reason why Lelouch would pick her as accomplice anyway.

but doesn't C.C. knows all lelouch's persona and had been supportive and stayed with him from the very start and in whatever path he chose?\

C.C. does know him. But I wouldn’t go so far as to say ‘supportive’, nonetheless wholly supportive.

C.C. had her self-serving reasons, just like Lelouch. C.C. was looking forward to the moment Lelouch could acquire enough power and take her Code from her, so she could die. That’s why she saved his ass a lot in R1 and perhaps at the very beginning of R2. Her wishes and her intentions morph very slowly, and at one point, perhaps even blended together -- half still wanted to die, the other half was slowly empathizing and caring for Lelouch.

But yes, none can deny that she stayed with him from start to finish.

C.C. could have left after Charles & Marianne died, and I don’t think Lelouch would have blamed her if she did -- considering it was obvious that he couldn’t fulfill his end of the contract anymore. But she stayed. She stayed and helped, and kept her promise to stay with him to the very end.

Lelouch & C.C.’s Age Gap

I hate it that people come at c.c.'s age and that she witness lelouch grow up like, is her immortality her fault? Like people are okay for male characters of 123456790 age falling for main girls in dramas or some animes for example but not okay if its c.c. lol

Lelouch & C.C.’s bizarre age-gap is literally not any different from an age-old vampire or any other immortal falling in-love with a human.

I can certainly point out plenty of stories that half this same massive age-gap, and its fans still love it.

#lelouch x c.c.#lelouch x kallen #suzaku x kallen #cluclu #lulucc #code geass #wbad ask me #wbad blog

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lillupon · 3 years

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So, I've got a very long rant/opinion here and Idk really know how to say this without coming off kinda bad but I'm gonna say it anyways. I agree with the fact that the seventeen tag has been kinda dry lately on most fanfic places, but it's really only in the smut area. It's the sane way with other groups too I feel like. All of the nice little innocent tags are boomin to this day and thats completely fine. I think the smut tag is dry tho bc lately I feel like a few social issues (like sexualizing people and disrespecting them and their identity) have crossed over into kpop and have been ?blown out of proportion? Lately there's been a rampage of people who like to say that writing smut about someone is disgusting and is dehumanizing because people want to assume that it would make the idols uncomfortable which could equate to some morality issues on how you are reducing someone only to their body without their consent and a bunch of stuff like that. It kind of pisses me off bc this is fiction. About grown adults. Clamping down on horny people who simp over hot asian men isn't going to solve the issues we face in real life. I think a shit ton is wrong with the world we currently live in, and deciding to come after something that isn't even real bothers me. Like what does that actually accomplish. But yeah, I think thats a reason why smut has been dying down. I mean, on youtube almost every video about unpopular opinions, or things they dont like about kpop will include something about shipping idols in fanfics. And then everyone in the comment section will talk about how its all fine and dandy in moderation, but once people start writing smut it's crossing the idols personal boundaries. It's something I've been seeing a lot more often and I think people who are interested in writing smut are being turned away from it bc we've gotten to a point where people are being called disgusting for having fantasies.

Hi Anon, thank you for sending in this Ask.

I want to preface this by saying: when I write or talk about Mingyu and Wonwoo fucking on my blog, it is a fantasy. I am not speculating about what the real Mingyu and Wonwoo might be like in bed. I am imagining the versions of Mingyu and Wonwoo that I have created in my head, that exist only in my stories. None of it is real. I understand that this can be a blurry boundary for some people. But for me, the separation between fantasy and reality is well-defined. Now, on to your Ask!

You’ve hit the nail on the head with this one. You’ve also touched on many of the issues I have been struggling with myself as of late. It’s difficult to argue about morals since everyone has a different set of values, as well as different comfort levels. Some people think real person fiction (RPF) is a gross invasion of privacy. Others are fine with it. And others don’t care one way or another. There is no single answer; I can only offer my answer. Which means, of course, people are welcome to disagree with it, or parts of it.

In this essay (LOL But forreal: this is an essay), I will be sharing my experience in the k-pop fanfic community from 2014 to present, the etiquette I personally abide by as a reader and writer of RPF, as well as my stance on RPF in general.

I started reading and posting fanfics back in 2014/2015 on a website called AsianFanfics (AFF). Obviously, no one on that site had a problem with RPF, since AFF is a platform made specifically for sharing stories about Asian celebrities. For many years, I read and enjoyed RPF with zero guilt. I scribbled away by myself in my own corner of fandom and curated my own content. I didn’t interact much with other fans, readers, or writers. I didn’t have a Twitter, and I only used tumblr to reblog memes. As a result, I’ve been able to avoid a lot of anti-shipping discourse, as well as purity and cancel culture. I had no idea there were so many negative opinions about RPF. It wasn’t until I became active on the subreddit r/Fanfiction last year that I learned about all the discourse surrounding RPF.

This newfound ‘awareness’ does make me feel guilty at times—but only because after mulling this over, I still don’t think this is something to feel guilty about.

Here’s what I remember, first and foremost, when I create and consume RPF: fanfics and my favourite ships are fictional, and fiction is fantasy. This is basic etiquette when it comes to RPF, and most people in the k-pop fandom understand this. Delusional fans exist, of course, but they are not representative of the entire k-pop community.

Another point of etiquette is to keep fanfics within fandom spaces. I would never push my fics into celebrities’ faces, or go around claiming that my fanfics are accurate representations of a k-idol’s life or personality, in any way, shape, or form. I would also discourage directing ship-related questions to official accounts, or bringing them up during fansigns or other face-to-face interactions; I believe that in these instances, shipping does have the potential to strain real-life relationships.

So with basic etiquette out of the way, let me share my approach to RPF in general.

As much as we like to think we know our favourite celebrities, we really don’t. All we see is their public persona. And this public persona is intentionally controlled, managed, and curated by a team of people: directors, tabloids, editors, makeup artists, publicists, etc. How “real” are these celebrities? We are so distanced from them that they may as well be fictional.

I draw from the public persona that idols project, and I work them into my own writing. But at the end of the day, these personalities are my own interpretation. My interpretation is probably nothing like an idol’s actual personality. I just use the “public persona/character” that idols portray as inspiration for my own stories, which are set in wildly different universes.

More than anything, I think of k-pop idols as “actors” in my fic. You know how when you write an original novel, you scroll through Google images, looking for the perfect person to portray your original character? RPF is literally that, except you might build upon pre-existing dynamics and personalities.

When it comes to explicit fanfiction, two main concerns are prevalent: one of consent, and one of sexualisation.

If we argue against explicit RPF due to lack of consent, we should be willing to apply the same lens to all explicit works. How do we know that the creator of a movie, book, series, etc., is okay with us using their characters in our stories, explicit or not? We don’t. Perhaps some creators encourage fanfiction, but don’t want their lovingly crafted characters engaging in sexual acts or experiencing trauma. We just don’t know. I feel this line is even more blurred when we talk about characters from movies or TV series.

Let’s take Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, as portrayed by Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan, from the Captain America movies as an example. I am willing to bet that when people consume and create explicit fanfiction about Steve and Bucky, they are imagining Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan in their heads. I doubt many people are imagining the 2D cartoon versions of Steve and Bucky, even though they’re technically the exact same characters. Why? Well, it could be because movies are more readily and easily consumed than comics, and so people are unfamiliar with comic book Steve and Bucky. But it might also be because fans find Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan attractive. Is this really any different from RPF, where fic authors make up everything about a celebrity’s life?

When readers and writers of fanfic talk about how hot Steve Rogers or Bucky Barnes is, those comments are about Chris Evans and Sebastian Stan’s bodies. When reading explicit stories, fans are going to picture Chris and Sebastian’s bodies in their head, doing sexual things. Can we say, “Well, it’s not really you, Chris/Sebastian”, when in a way, it is?

The reality is, people are going to thirst over celebrities, regardless of whether or not explicit fanfiction exists. They’re going to post thirst tweets on Twitter. They’re going to talk to friends and strangers online about how hot [insert celebrity name here] is. They’re going to fantasize about dating and having sex with their favourite celebrity. Or, as it is in my case, they’re going to make up stories in their heads about their favourite idols dating and banging each other. People are going to do all of this without ‘getting consent’ from the celebrity. Cracking down upon and shaming writers of RPF isn’t going to change any of that.

To be honest, I’m not sure why people think it is disgusting to imagine sexual scenarios about real people. It is okay and normal to have these kinds of fantasies. I suppose the alternative is to fantasise about having sex with cartoon characters instead? It’s a very binary way of thinking to say that if you imagine/write real people in explicit scenarios, you are immediately sexualising, dehumanising, or objectifying them. There is more to dehumanisation than writing smut about our favourite celebrities. For one thing, you can love someone and appreciate all parts of them, and still want to fuck their brains out. And generally, fanfics come from a place of love—love that is not only sexual in nature.

Is it the sharing aspect inherent to fanfiction? The possibility that a celebrity might stumble upon explicit works about them? The chances are very low, I think, of the k-pop idols I enjoy writing about coming across my English fics. But I also believe in curating your own content, and that applies to celebrities too. Perhaps a celebrity should not go searching for fanfics about themselves. And of course, people should not show celebrities their fanfics, unless invited.

Another argument I hear against (explicit) RPF is, “How would you feel if someone wrote fanfiction about you?” First off, I don’t like this argument because there’s a difference between someone who decides to be a public figure versus someone who decides to remain a regular private citizen. Celebrities should and do know what they’re getting into when they choose their occupation. (This is not to say, “They are celebrities; sexualise them all you want because that’s what they signed up for.” Here, I am only acknowledging that people might have sexual fantasies about celebrities they are attracted to. Presumably, celebrities are cognizant of this.)

If someone (whose existence I am not even aware of, mind you) decides they want to write explicit fanfiction of me in some tiny corner of the Internet, I wouldn’t care so long as: (1) they don’t shove it into my face, and (2) they don’t harass me and ask invasive questions about my personal life and relationships. It’s not hurting me or negatively affecting my life, so it wouldn’t even register as a blip on my radar. When fanfiction remains within its appropriate spaces, it is largely harmless.

Now, if a k-pop idol were to ask their fans to stop writing fanfiction about them, would I? Yes, I would. However, I can’t imagine that happening. Judging by the number of ‘sexy’ concepts, fanservice moments, and variety shows such as ‘We Got Married’, I am certain that k-pop idols realise they are the stars of many fantasies—some of which are explicit in nature. Considering the prevalence of shipping in the k-pop industry, I would argue that shipping is subtly encouraged.

It’s sad that so many talented writers are shamed out of fandom, or feel that k-pop cannot be the medium through which they tell their stories, or explore their sexuality, or cope with trauma, or simply have fun. Professional works and Hollywood love their RPF—readers and writers of fanfics should be able to, as well.

As you said Anon, “clamping down on horny people who simp over hot asian men isn't going to solve the issues we face in real life” (this is a lovely sentence, by the way). The kind of person who dehumanises another and reduces them to a sexual object will do so some other way, if not via fanfiction. I don’t think the issue of fetishisation can be fixed simply by telling people not to write explicit RPF. In my experience, people who read and write RPF are more respectful and thoughtful about these things than the general public. We’ve all seen the general public say highly sexual things about celebrities in the media and to their faces, or tag celebrities in their thirst tweets. Are these things less invasive than fanfiction? Personally, I don’t think so. And in my opinion, there are more pressing and damaging issues in stan culture than fanfic.

In conclusion, I don’t think there is anything wrong with creating and consuming RPF, both explicit and non-explicit so long as we:

Remember we are writing fiction

Keep RPF within its appropriate space, and

Do not harass celebrities about their personal lives and relationships

RPF is not for everyone. There may be people who enjoy RPF, but draw the line at explicit stories. This is fine. Everyone has their own personal preferences. What is not fine, however, is attacking people for creating things you don’t like. I’m not sure what kind of moral crusade people are on and what they hope to achieve by shaming writers of RPF, explicit or otherwise. Ultimately, fic authors are writing a fantasy. It’s not real; no one is being hurt. I think it’s important for people to curate their own content, and AO3 makes it very easy to filter out explicit works and unwanted tags.

Maybe this is me trying to justify my own participation in explicit RPF—I don’t know. What I do know is that I love k-pop, and fandom is an important part of my media and entertainment experience. I adore the k-pop idols I write about, and I just want to imagine them being happy and getting lots of love and orgasms. Let a bitch be horny, goddamn…

Some bonus fun facts!

At the time I am writing this, on AO3:

26.2% of Stray Kids fanfics are rated M or E

26.3% of Seventeen fanfics are rated M or E

29.0% of Merlin fanfics are rated M or E

34.9% of Captain America (Movies) fanfics are rated M or E

40.1% of BTS fanfics are rated M or E ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Coincidentally, I saw this post on Reddit this morning: Can we have a RPF positivity post?

#asks #my writing #fic & fandom #I keep coming back to fiddle and add things to this answer #but I think I've said all I wanted to now...

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katyatalks · 4 years

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Otomedia April 2019 - Sakurai Takahiro [Reigen VA] & Itou Setsuo’s [Mob VA] Joint Interview

Here’s Sakurai Takahiro [Reigen VA] & Itou Setsuo’s [Mob VA] joint interview from Otomedia April 2019! Contains some nice meta to do with the two (and allusions to Dad Reigen, which are always great), some good thoughts on Reigen’s maturity & past, and more.

Sakurai = ST Itou = IS

Q: What have been your thoughts on the Mob we’ve seen in season 2 so far?

IS: Mob-kun has clearly been opposed to his Shishou’s words for the first time with a, “No, that’s wrong,” whereas beforehand he’d followed along with them sans complaint.

ST: Because the Reigen and Mob we’d seen up to this point have played the roles of ‘adult’ and ‘child’ respectively.

IS: Before coming across the Telepathy Club in season 1, Mob had no one who he could really call a friend. All he had was his little brother Ritsu, and childhood friend & crush Tsubomi-chan. If he didn’t have Reigen-shishou, then he would’ve had no other connections, but now in season 2 he has other people. His day-to-day life wouldn’t come crumbling down without him. So now, if he has any complaints, he has the will to follow through on them, I think.

Q: Itou-san, what are your thoughts on Mob’s growth?

IS: I think he’s become an adult. [...]

ST: In season 2, Mob rebels against Reigen, but I think what Mob was saying was completely justified (laughs). Up until now we’ve seen Reigen use Mob with that eloquence of his, but it’s key to remember that the Mob who Reigen originally met was still a child. In season 2, Mob grows, and gains life experience. It’s due to that growth that Mob questions Reigen plenty. But Reigen doesn’t notice Mob’s growth, continuing to treat him like a child, calling him his ‘deshi’. Truth is, Reigen is a nobody. He’s existed up until now riding the waves of his feelings and his gut, beginning Spirits & Such just as the thought popped into his head, and just as he planned to give up on the business a path opens up for him in the form of his chance meeting with Mob. That’s all. His life isn’t something he’s pioneered for himself. [...]

Q: What are your thoughts on Reigen’s own humanity?

ST: The things Reigen does are conman-like, but he’s not a bad person. He may call a massage an “exorcism”, but it’s not like he’s charging people money without putting any work in. Reigen looks at Mob’s growth, and reality is thrust before his eyes - he has to face the question, “what exactly am I?”. He has experience within limitations and he’s clearly an adult when you look at his age, so he acts like a grown up around Mob, saying wise things to him, but when ‘reality’, that he’s been running away from all this time, appears before his eyes…

IS: For me personally, when I look at Reigen-shishou’s ‘bad’ parts, I feel I can really connect to them, so I think they’re very human.

Q: You could look at S2E6-7 as being Mob’s “rebellious period” toward Reigen, couldn’t you.

IS: Mob-kun’s actual parents are the kind of people who would be close to him no matter what happens, so I don’t think he has the option to be rebellious when it comes to them. So, I think that Mob-kun’s first step in his growth was in his connection with Reigen-shishou. If he remained in that closed off world composed of simply his parents and Ritsu, then the years would pile on without him changing. But he meets Reigen-shishou, and through him he meets various other people… so, Mob’s growth wouldn’t have been possible without Shishou.

ST: Reigen actions, rather than being for the sake of Mob’s growth, were solely for his own benefit. Another person who tags along with Mob with that kind of vibe is Dimple.

Q: Dimple also plays a good role in season 2, doesn’t he.

IS: There’s a scene in episode 5 in which Dimple possesses Mob-kun when he’s passed out and protects him. He leaves his body in Dimple’s care when he goes within Mogami because he trusts him. I don’t think he thinks that Dimple is completely good, but he takes into account the relationship that the two of them have had up until that point, and believes that if Dimple were to do anything his Shishou is there, so it’d be okay. But I think Mob-kun isn’t aware that Dimple is actually a powerful evil spirit, since he hasn’t lost to Dimple before (laughs).

ST: Everyone loses their poisonous nature when they associate with Mob. I think Dimple has hints of that, too. To the extent that he has to remind himself every so often that, “I’m going to use Shigeo and become a God!” (Laughs)

Q: What kind of existence is Dimple to Reigen?

ST: Something like, Reigen is the shishou, Mob is the deshi, and Dimple is the deshi’s henchman. I think he looks down on him [...]. Reigen’s got a good way of conducting himself that no one else has, so he’s able to change the way he reacts to Dimple depending on the time, place, occasion - he’ll have a proper conversation with him one day and kick him the next (laughs).

IS: Dimple thinks of himself as “Ore-sama” (the almighty me), but he’s pretty much looked down on by everyone around him. Ritsu looks down on him too.

Q: In season 2 we see Mob gradually grow closer to his friends, but do you not think Reigen becomes lonely as a result?

ST: Reigen still takes the stance that, ‘I’m just using you,’ so I think he doesn’t really notice how Mob is doing. I’m the one who feels lonely (laughs). I feel a distance in the hearts of Reigen and Mob, whenever Reigen doesn’t appear in season 2 [but Mob does].

Q: Did you not find it frustrating, playing that kind of unaware Reigen?

ST: No, since I suppose that’s just how it is. Reigen’s not an idiot or a no-good kinda guy - if I had to choose a way to describe him I’d say he’s a good, clever person, but up until now he’s been someone who has lived an evasive, mysterious life, like he’s running away. The negative consequences of that are advancing on him now. [...]

Q: Of the episodes that have aired so far, please tell us which ones you liked and your reasons.

IS: Episode 1 with the letter, and Reigen-shishou’s press conference from episode 7. In episode 1, Mob, of his own will, uses his powers for someone else’s sake. Until that moment we’d seen him help out others with his powers under shishou’s instructions, but he’s been told fundamentally to not use his powers in public. This is the first time we’ve seen him expressly use his powers in front of someone else, even if it’s just restoring a ripped-up story back to the state it originally was.

ST: “Writing stories” is quite like powers, in the context we see it. She’d always been hiding her stories, and when her story is seen by others it is torn to pieces. I thought that was quite similar to Mob’s powers. We see the growth Mob goes through in season 1 in season 2’s episode 1. [...]

IS: [...] There’s also the reunion with Reigen-shishou in episode 7. It’s an emotionally striking part of the season. In that scene, when the two of them are talking, Mob-kun says “I’ve known since the very start” - huh? Could it be, Mob-kun has known what shishou has been hiding all this time? Then he says, “My shishou is a good person” - so mature!

ST: Reigen is unsophisticated in that scene. All the bricks he’s laid up to that point have come tumbling down. It’s likely the first time he’s allowed himself to be weak around Mob. [...Episode 5 was amazing, too!]

IS: It was like a movie, wasn’t it?!

ST: [...] The animation was truly amazing. I didn’t really appear much in that episode, but I watched it with the rest of the cast in awe.

IS: I was desperate, thinking I HAD to match Ishida-san’s performance (laughs).

ST: Right? Mogami being voiced by Ishida Akira-san is a big deal. Before, when I’d asked who was going to voice Mogami, I was astonished when I was told it was going to be Ishida Akira-san.

IS: (Bursts into laughter)

ST: A respectful bow to him. He was truly fantastic!

IS: Within the story itself, we see a more-or-less powerless Mob-kun within Mogami’s world. I felt just as overwhelmed as Mob-kun was by how powerful an actor Ishida-san is. In that kind of world, you’d expect someone put into that situation to continue to be bullied without understanding the reality of what was happening and it’d end that way, but what rose up in Mob-kun was the determination to save Minori. [...]

Q: We’re reaching the climax of season 2 of Mob Psycho 100. What should we pay attention to when following the story?

ST: Mob’s growth becomes clear, and the story becomes flashier. Mob Psycho 100’s distinctive, impactful battle scenes are once again a highlight. Mob has been maturing - what kind of growth is he going to show us next? Please be sure to pay attention to that. Mob’s fighting style will also differ to what we’ve seen so far. There’s also an increase in scenes where Reigen doesn’t say much, but worries in his own way. I think it’d be good if you imagine just what’s going on in his heart when watching the scenes that include him!

IS: Season 1 finishes off with a big fight between several different espers - season 2 finishes off similarly, but with even grander espers. I’d like you to pay attention to the flashiness of the music and drawings. [...] Regarding how season 2 ends - please make sure to watch it right to the very end!

---

Twitter crosspost here.

Otomedia April 2019;

ONE’s special interview here.

Sakurai Takahiro [Reigen VA] & Itou Setsuo [Mob VA] joint interview here.

Kokuryuu Sachi [Shou VA] interview here.

Itou Setsuo [Mob VA] & Irino Miyu [Ritsu VA] interview here.

Character Designer Kameda, Eye-catch Team Kenja, Series Co-ordinator Seko & Director Tachikawa's interview here.

#mp100 #mob psycho 100 #reigen arataka #kageyama shigeo #sakurai takahiro #itou setsuo #my stuff #i REALLY like the reigen analysis here #otomedia april 2019

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steve0discusses · 4 years

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Yugioh S4 Ep 9: Denial on so Many Fronts

I’ve managed to have a pretty open timeslot this holiday, where I decided I was going to do lots of catch up work. (I have instead filled up my Background Music Playlist with lots of youtube piano covers of Castlevania.)

So of course I find myself back at this blog to fill the leftover time, it being so many weeks (months, actually) since I was able to do a double update weekend (spoiler, I did not finish a second update :) ).

This episode, Yugioh decided to legitimately enter romance territory and y’all it is something. And I don’t mean it in a “Ain’t that something!” sort of way, I mean it in the “That is...something.” Kind of way. And for the first time in forever, I actually have to talk about romance today. For once that is actually something this episode is about. For about 5 entire minutes. It’s staggering.

So lets get into it because the stance the show decides to take against the only valid romantic relationship it’s had outside of Pegasus sure is something.

Duke has managed to get inside Pegasus’ facility/Place Duke works at every single day. Incredible that he finally made it inside of his actual workplace. Whether he just found an open door or Metal Geared up a trash chute is undeclared, since that was all off screen between episodes, but maybe he has to do this like...all the time? Like heaven forbid Duke ever leave his phone at the office because this place seems iron clad and apparently there is absolutely no one he can call to let him in.

Like for reals isn’t Duke upper level management or something? Like a team director for an entire model of card game? Wtv, I guess he got demoted at some point and now he’s at the same level as a Google temp.

Duke used to air on international TV, just throwing that out there. He used to be a very big deal. Course, for all we know, maybe he also got locked out of his game store all the freakin time?

Anyway, he finds some random room he’s decided is the security room and uh...

Starts just mashing buttons.

I assume that he was just mashing the entire time it took for this duel to last, PS, because we all know that password, but does Duke? Is Duke, in fact, the only character left on this show that doesn’t know Pegasus’ password because he wasn’t there in most of S1?

(read more under the cut)

As Joey is playing Mai, he’s noticed that she is freaking out, but only intermittently. She’s going in between personalities like Yugi and Pharaoh.

In the show it makes it seem like she’s “Snapping out of it” as far as the Orichalcos’ effects go. But like...becoming a stumbling crying mess in between card draws is sort of like...not making Joey look like a good guy.

In fact, this episode goes out of their way to try and paint him a hero but they didn’t accomplish that. They start to. It starts to look like that. As Mai is breaking down, she loses her weird Oricalchos ability to no longer feel fear, and Joey takes the opportunity to try and get her to away from the dark side.

Thing is, the duel has already started so it’s kind of moot now since neither she nor Joey really know how to end the duel without killing the other. So it’s like he’s trying to reach out to her the only way he can since this duel wasn’t his choice anyway, but it is in a way that is killing both of them. Symbolism, I guess.

You know, it seemed like the show just needed a way to put a timer over Joey’s head and this was the only excuse they could give because the right thing to have done is just not play anything.

And that whole thing last episode where Pharaoh was like “there is ONE way out of this situation” I assumed would be about a tie. I kind of just assumed a tie would take place like between Kaiba and Alister...instead...it got weird.

First off, Valon--out of all people, Valon the drug card pusher of the wacky accent--decided to be more heroic than any of our heroes who are currently just gawking at a force field.

It’s been like 4 seasons since Yugi jumped and hung off the edge of a clocktower, only holding on by the point of his pyramid puzzle, and I keep seeing situations where we could see Yugi impress us yet again and instead he keeps his feet planted firmly on the ground while random ass Valon just shoots into the air like a rubber band.

Why didn’t I just assume that when Pharaoh said “I know how to beat this.” he meant to punch it directly in the face?

I’m pretty sure it’s an allusion to the fact that Oricalchos takes away your sense of fear that these three are constantly being huge idiots and jumping off ledges and out of airplanes but like...

...they are wearing a lot of padding, to be fair.

(I joke about Joey getting possessed as if he hasn’t been already)

And so Valon, this evil as hell villain who’s probably killed countless numbers of people up until now just starts freaking out about Mai. Like, a lot for this show. Like we even get a really awkward death squeeze. And like she ain’t even dead.

Almost like Severus Snape in that awkward Harry Potter Movie flashback, but Valon actually dated her once (I could go off about the Harry Potter movies but I’ll spare you.) It’s just every time Mai passes out there will be some man crying over her that she doesn’t even seem remotely aware of when she’s awake.

Like remember how Mai got engaged and she forgot? At the time I thought that was super weird but I’m starting to realize she probably just took a nap or something and then boom.

So although none of this is Raphael’s business, he’s so annoyed at Valon for possibly pissing off Darts that he decides to deflect his anger onto Pharaoh--who wasn’t even participating in this duel.

I mean Raphael wanted to kill Pharaoh anyway but it still feels like kind of a reach.

Speaking of reach...I miss our really good storyboarder. Check out that foreshortened hand. Man Yugioh, the whiplash from good to eh. It’s so much whiplash.

So, in a burst of green light, the three bikers vanish.

And I guess now they can just use Mai’s bike whenever, because it’s not like she’s gonna use it. But I doubt very much Tristan will remember that.

And so, this is about where this episode’s romance goes a little weird because Joey just...

Am I supposed to want Joey to break up Valon and Mai? Like I know one time Joey attempted to take a fireball for her (but didn’t, that was Pharaoh, who isn’t currently crying about Mai despite taking a fireball for her), and then another time Joey dueled Marik for her (and lost.) But like...then Joey lost touch with her for over a year and legitimately didn’t seem bothered until just now when she showed up.

Valon not only seems at least 2 years older than Joey, he’s also stuck around with her for longer than a week, which is much longer than the amount of time that Joey Wheeler has spent with her (while she was conscious). And listen I don’t ship, you know me, but I feel like the show isn’t doing a good job to convince me that Valon is anything but loyal to Mai. Just throwing that out there.

It just comes off that Joey is jealous and unable to cope with Mai being around another guy, when it’s like...Joey...Mai was gone for over a year. You can’t claim dibs anymore. It’s possessive this episode to a degree I don’t think the writers wanted to go. It feels like an accident that they wrote him like this.

I guess, story wise, Joey needs a reason to duel and be on this show--but why must it always gravitate around a girl who’s actually just fine without him?

Like Mai right now is a mess but she wants to be this mess. Personally I think he should respect her decision and give her space but I guess this show really wants to go the angle of “If your friend goes off the deep end, dive after them” to which I would like to say “or don’t.”

Like I think this is all on a case by case basis, but...Mai’s MURDERED people (and a gas station). Although one of them was Pegasus, who doesn’t count, this is still a situation where you should maybe avoid your friend and just call the cops already. If there has been a murder, especially if there’s been over 20 murders, it’s OK to finally call the cops. Mai is a SERIAL MURDERER, which should never mean “she can come back.”

I mean it’s not like any of these kids decided to start hanging out with Marik, right? And I mean they kinda all decided unanimously that maybe they should hold back chilling with Bakura? This should be old hat for them now. They’ve had to deal with the murderous betraying friend so many times. Why must Mai be so special?

But I guess that is Joey’s whole shpeal, isn’t it? That’s Joey’s magical superpower? He wouldn’t be friends with Yugi if he was bothered by his friend occasionally going Pure Asshole. And Joey did have a darker background himself (which is something the show keeps telling me but I have never actually seen because we haven’t seen it in Season Zero. Which honestly means I should do a Season Zero next because how long am I going to wait to watch that Joey backstory?)

So I guess I should stop being so practical about it, this is a fantasy story, and the fantasy of Joey Wheeler is that he can actually try to keep the people in his life from going topside and it actually works. The most magical person in all of Yugioh if that’s true because you ever try and change a drug addict? There’s a reason why they have therapists for that.

Speaking of topside,

Kaiba just shows up in the middle of a Joey meltdown and youknow what? He’s barely even that surprised that these guys are in San Fransisco crying on the floor of his ex-competitor’s lobby. He’s just so used to this.

And so, we’re all going to ignore Joey and just try not to notice Rex and Weevil and instead talk about cards.

Ps in the show Mokuba says his brother “swept the floor” of Alister when like...Seto nearly died multiple times. Mokuba’s so ready to lie his face off to save his brother’s face when like...no one asked. He just volunteered this information.

That and Mokuba might not actually know how this game is played (NO ONE REALLY KNOWS) and legitimately thinks his brother did really good in that card game. We still don’t know entirely what the title “Battle Commissioner” even meant and knowing this company it was probably a secret job made to hide lots and lots of illicit insider trading. Because we all know Mokuba wasn’t playing cards.

So, Yugi remembers that he has this key card that is a card with a key printed on it, and figures...it probably opens a door or something. That maybe they should do that thing they came to California to do, and since all (counts on fingers) 9 of them (10 if you count Pharaoh) are here, they may as well all do it together.

Meanwhile, every animator in that studio cried a single tear over the amount of bad hair they will have to shove into every frame between 9 of these people. Crowd scenes wow.

And what’s great about this next shot is that you have no idea which way Joey’s head is pointed. I dare you. take it in.

And so they all go up to the top floor with Duke Devlin while these two are just...still here.

Rex and Weevil are still here. Despite everything.

(forgive me if this is a joke I forgot I read off of tumblr once. I’ve been reviewing this show so long I just...I don’t remember what jokes I’ve already made)

(Also, I can’t believe they stuck in Rex and Weevil but didn’t put in Mokuba into this shot.)

So they open the cryptic door with the cryptic Keycard and enter...Pegasus’ room of toon suits.

I imagine he just pulls these out whenever there’s an event in the city, just like “Hell yes hell yes it’s Bay to Breakers time to be a parrot with boobs for some reason.”

(fun fact, despite the weather, SF is home to 3 clothes-optional beaches. You can see two of them from the Bridge.)

And so Pegasus decides to tell everybody what we already know. Rex and Weevil have overheard this, but they’re busy like...looking for trading cards in all these mascot suits. Whatever makes it easier for this team of animators. Like you never really think about it, but kid’s shows have just a hell ton of crowd scenes. Worse than a Marvel comic right here.

PS, if you are designing a comic or a drawn story of any degree--just never allow a party to be more than 4 people at a time, Kill off anyone you have to in order to make this happen, you’ll thank me later. Never EVER a draw a crowd scene. Once you do, then other people will think that you can draw crowd scenes, and you never, ever want anyone to know that.

It was nice of Pegasus to let Arthur Hawkin’s take the fame for Atlantis, I guess. But like...Pegasus just...he really doesn’t seem to care about the fate of humanity unless it inconveniences his card game.

Bro brought up “how much do you think Pharaoh even knows about America other than it’s a place across the sea that Rebecca lives? Like do you think that he has a good grasp on there being 7 continents?” and I’m guessing...not much. Course this is like a weird America with mesas and deserts in Napa so...I don’t know if the animators have a good grasp even.

Anyway, where do you think the key is?

And What do you think the key is?

So in the show Kaiba sees this card and goes “It’s a worthless card” (because I dunno maybe he forgot for the zillionth time that this was how he got turned into a playing card) and then Pharaoh replies “Maybe to you it is.” and like...

...You know the thought crossed Pharaoh’s mind.

To just put a little Seto in there.

Youknow, it took me 4 seasons but I can deffo see why and how Pegasus did it. If I were in Pegasus’ shoes, how long would it take me before the Kaiba kids are paper? Like 10-20 minutes tops? Especially with how completely insane Kaiba acts this episode?

And speaking of endless denial, Joey still hasn’t quite caught up to the plot.

He’s getting there, but he’s mentally still crying on the floor of the lobby.

Just Joey going all ham about a girl he hasn’t thought about in over a year. And then from the other side of the room, Kaiba is still coming to terms with Ep 2.

Like you have to hand it to Duke Devlin that not once in this entire series has he had a denial meltdown. Even Yugi had a denial meltdown (at several points) but Duke? Duke’s just winging it. Dukes just has no idea what’s happening or what he’s doing and is just winging it every second he’s been alive. He’d fit right into San Fransisco.

Like remember Duke hangs out in the bad parts of the Tenderloin for some reason, he deals with PG&E just deleting your power willy nilly and still making you pay for it, Comcast, Bay Area traffic, and, of course, the entire North Bay lighting on fire once a year, so he’s totally fine when it comes to cards.

And so Yugi, just unable to think of any solution to Kaiba being a wall just holds this up

And so with that, Kaiba has joined the party. I guess.

Well, back to eating this large stack of holiday cookies. Hope y’all have a good one--happy holidays!

It’s been a very weird year, but we’ve had some good news here in the States recently, I’m sure you all heard about it, that Inktober is legally unprofitable so now that means there will be nigh an Inktober ever again, and I am so stoked. I am so excited that the decade of hellish Inktobers is finally over.

That and the other stuff that happened but we won’t get into that ;)

Hopefully I’ll do another post before 2020 but I’m sort of in denial that 2020 is happening so I’m doing my best not to look at the calendar.

And if you just got here, this is where you can read my recaps in Chrono order from S1 Ep1

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josietaplinlma32-blog · 5 years

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BLOCKING BEAUTIFUL

The choreography is much like the music and very accented and staccato. Whilst the style of choreography isn't very technical, it is important for the ensemble to still be dramatic in their movements and also devise their own personal characters in order to give the most realistic and effective portrayal of a run down high school like Westerburg. Lucy emphasised the importance of this, and suggested that we think of the number more like a scene rather than a dance - this helped members of the ensemble to step away from the fear of not looking neat and making clean lines with the body and instead embody the personalities of the characters in the school.

From the beginning of the song to the section whereby the Heather’s enter, the choreography is fast paced and has a feeling of anger behind it. The music changes when the Heather’s enter; making for a more grandiose effect and accentuating the importance of them within the school. The section that follows this includes moments of slow motion - this works to add comedy to the number - as facial expressions are really over done by all of the characters in order to portray the story correctly and play on ideas/themes such as cliques in high schools, the popular girls and the way they present themselves in comparison to those who aren’t considered to be of the same status.

For the remainder of the song, there is a clear contrast in choreography, patterns and spacing between the ensemble and the Heather’s. The first example of this can be seen as the Heather’s enter stage through a tunnel that is formed by the ensemble who stand in lines and hold up their arms. This not only gives for a pleasant aesthetic for the audience but it is also a physical embodiment of the ideologies possessed by the school kids towards the Heather’s - that they will do anything for them or to be liked by them.

After strutting through the tunnel, the three girls form a triangular shape on stage, landing with a more showgirl like stance - hands on hips, bevels and excellent posture - they look in control. With Chandler at the head of the triangle - they freeze. Automatically this stands out from the rest of the school kids, who are chaotic in their movements and personal journeys throughout the number.

The ensemble have been advised against the idea of creating stereotypically picturesque lines and shapes with their bodies. They have instead have been directed to really work to develop characters that are a complete contrast to the Heather’s and show this through their movements in the number. The directions given to the ensemble work to accentuate the difference in status between them and the Heathers - and vice versa.

TICK TOCKS

Something interesting we learned about this week was what our director calls ‘Tick Tocks’ - a small string of movements/a motif that is used to pass the time when your character is in view of the audience but is not the central focal point/has not been assigned any specific choreography. The motif will be made up of small movements and signature gestures that work to portray your character. The Tick Tock does not pull the attention away from the focal point, but compliments it and makes for another interesting visual for the audience.

For my Tick Tock, I have included gestures such as fixing my hair, biting my lip and subtly changing my weight from one foot to the other - this softens the gestures and gives them a more slow motion feeling. Like much of the opening number, moments like these are essential because it is the first time we as an audience are interacting with the characters and finding out how they view themselves. For me, I believe it is essential to show the confidence and self assurance that Chandler is filled with.

THE SCENE WITHIN THE SONG - CONTEXT AND CHARACTER THOUGHT PROCESS

There is a break within the song whereby the Heathers have a small scene where we are properly introduced to them for the first time. Lucy encouraged us to be constantly thinking of our character thought process so that the chemistry between the three girls isn't lost at any point. For Chandler, I am working to consistently keep in my head the idea that she doesn't actually ‘like’ the other two Heather’s; she has manipulated them for her own good and will use them for things she doesn't have the energy to entertain. Because of this, she is in control and this is shown through her stance and facial expressions on stage - especially in this scene where she patronises her teacher. She continues forth to patronise Veronica and when we see Chandler realise that Veronica is easily manipulated - her expressions begin to change and we can see her conjuring up a plan to mould Veronica the same way that she has done with the Heather’s.

PROBLEM SOLVING

Similar to my delivery of the character in the audition, I found I was giving too much energy and making my movements and gestures too big for a character who is so aware of her control over every situation she is in. As a performer this is my weakness and I struggle sometimes to contain my energy or channel it into the right places. I am finding the character of Chandler to be very good for me and also challenging at the same time as I work to break these habits of always over excepting my energy when performing.

I was first finding that in moments that warrant a reaction from Chandler - I was reacting too much - with bigger and sharper arm movements, as well as using my face too. When channeling the idea of her control, I soon realised that Chandler does not feel the need to show her authority by even moving her body, she only has to look at the girls with a certain expression and they already know to move - this further emphasises the idea that she doesn't even bother to waste her energy on telling the girls what to do - because they know automatically they are always one look away from being asked to do the next thing. Similarly to the dynamic discussed earlier between the three girls and the ensemble; the contrast in stage presence helps to emphasise that of the other group. The underlying nervousness from the other two Heather’s works well to emphasise Chandler’s control, and vice versa.

From time to time throughout the show and the scenes to come, I may add small gestures such as a click or a nod of the head to keep the character fresh and intriguing, but aside from this, I am working on channeling my energy into the eyes because this is where I believe the fierceness of Chandler to come from. She is almost scary without moving due to the intensity on her face and her presence on stage.

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freedom-of-fanfic · 7 years

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hey there! so, i strive to be philosophically consistent and i think i need some insight: what would be the point of critizising stuff if you ultimately couldnt claim that some content is inherently bad? why would any of us want to critizise anything at all if problematic content is always allowed to exist? how can i ever say 'X show is mysoginistic' if i also say 'noncon/loli/etc is acceptable'? im not trying to test u with these q's, i just want to hear some other opinions bc im confused. x

these are good questions tbh. I’ll try to keep the rambling to a reasonable length for once. but the really short answer to all three of the questions you posed is

it’s all about context.

question 1:

what would be the point of critizising stuff if you ultimately couldnt claim that some content is inherently bad?

First let’s define the words ‘bad’ and ‘inherently’. (This phrase gets used so much in anti parlance because it’s ill-defined and vague and therefore perfect for wrecking debate attempts.) in the context of the rest of your ask, I think I’ll define ‘bad’ as ‘immoral’. (Therefore, ‘good’ means ‘morally upright’.) Also, to make it clear: ‘inherent’ is ‘innate’.

to say something is ‘inherently bad’ is to say that the quality of ‘badness’ is inseparable from the thing. so the core of this question is: can fiction be innately immoral? and if not, why would you critique it?

IMO, because fictional content is fictional, and thus unverifiable, no one fictional work can ever have an inherent moral value. However, critique is absolutely valuable as a supported opinion (though it cannot be a verifiably correct truth).

There’s debate as to whether humans have an inborn moral compass. If they do, then it’s possible that certain actions can be innately immoral. Deliberately harming another person’s physical being by assault, rape, or murder would certainly count as innately immoral. Lying is immoral; stealing is immoral. There may be good reasons for some of these things (though not all) - harming or killing in self-defense/in battle, lying to protect or for social grease, stealing to survive - but they are not moral actions.

Similarly, a character in a fictional work might act in an immoral way. But does that make the fictional work itself immoral?

The answer will depend on the person. Some people will feel that any morally gray action in a story means the fictional work is endorsing immorality. Others might feel the work depicts the acts but condemns them. Others still will feel it’s simply an aspect to a good fictional story, and yet others may feel that the work is trying to do one thing but actually accomplishing another.

And they will all be right. Each person’s individual understanding, created by how they read the work, their personal experiences, their cultural background, their personality, their identity - will come together to create an entirely unique experience with any fictional work, and each person’s final opinion on the work can never, ever be wrong.*

If the only reason for criticizing a work is to determine whether the work is good or bad on some universal scale, then yes - it’s useless to bother. no scale is actually universal when it comes to fiction. But if the purpose of critique is to give a reasoned opinion and appeal to others to agree with you, then criticism is still valid as part of ongoing, honest debate about what makes fiction ‘good’ to you and people who think similarly to you.

In short, no crit of fiction can truly encompass every individual experience of a piece of fiction, so no crit will ever be the ‘absolute truth’ any more than any story will be ‘innately good’. it’s all about context, and everyone has individual context when it comes to fiction.

*an opinion can be misinformed or lack information, so some opinions may be more valid than others, but an opinion is an opinion: it’s not wrong. It’s personal.

question 2:

why would any of us want to critizise anything at all if problematic content is always allowed to exist?

because fiction may be allowed to exist - but so is your opinion of the fictional work that has content you find problematic!

Just because fiction is allowed to exist doesn’t mean you can’t try to dissuade people from consuming it. There’s nothing wrong with deciding you hate something and telling everyone that you hate it and you think it’s awful and bad in every way and nobody should ever look at it.

However. (when is there not one!)

It is the responsibility of a critic or reviewer to review with respect, particularly in the realm of fanworks. Just as a creator should be held responsible for tagging their work with the correct pairings and warnings (or make it clear that they choose not to warn to avoid spoilers and consumers should be aware the work might have upsetting content), a reviewer should be held responsible for:

keeping their review focused on the work, not the creator, and

being clear that their review is an opinion, not fact.

keeping their review focused on the work - depiction is not endorsement. there is no way to know, unless a creator states it directly, that their work is a direct reflection of their personal beliefs. Saying ‘this story contains [x] and therefore the author is an [x]ist’ is defamation.

being clear that their review is an opinion - A reviewer can use facts, their personal experiences, and their knowledge of the creator’s other works as backups for their opinion, but their opinion will still just be an opinion. people who assert their opinion is a fact are being disingenuous and shut down discussion rather than stimulating it, which is a shame because more discussion leads to be better understanding of why a work is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ or whatever.

unless one is the appointed spokesperson of a group, and that group has agreed that whatever that person says about a work is their collective opinion, no opinion speaks for an entire group. if a reviewer asserts ‘I am [x], and this work upsets me because [reasons related to being [x]],’ that does not mean that everyone else who is [x] will feel the same way. (expecting a marginalized or hurt individual to be the spokesperson of everyone who shares that marginalization/hurt is actually a form of stereotyping and really shitty!)

When reviewers don’t review responsibly, particularly when giving negative reviews, they can incite personal hatred of the creator and fear/hatred of the work itself. Depending on the situation and severity, it can even lead to mob-law-style dogpiles and attempts to scare the creator into either taking the work down or running away themselves - a form of group censorship, to be frank.

In short: critique must be kept in the context of opinions, or it stifles conversation and leads to censorship in situations where discussion and education would be more effective and valuable.

question 3:

how can i ever say ‘X show is mysoginistic’ if i also say ‘noncon/loli/etc is acceptable’?

because it’s okay - and, maybe paradoxically, more logically consistent - to have different stances on the same subject depending on the context.

you can’t apply the same rules equally to all people, all situations, or all experiences and expect to get fair results (and if you try, you’ll inevitably bring down the most harm on the people who need the most help). For a simplistic example, if you taxed everybody the same income percentage, it would look fair. But more of a poor person’s income goes directly to living expenses than that of a rich person’s income. If you tax the rich person 10%, they won’t feel it in any want of necessary food, clothing, or shelter, but the poor person almost definitely would.

what I’m trying to say is that it’s acceptable - even ideal - to apply different standards (and different scales of reaction) to fanworks than to published books, than to high-circulation published books, than to TV shows, than to internationally-released movies, than to real life (etc etc). There’s several reasons for this:

the scale of impact is widely different. Fanfics rarely get even a million unique views, even after years of circulation. A tv show reaches millions of pairs of eyes every week.

the context is widely different. Transformative fandom, a relatively small space, has a disproportionate number of non-straight/non-cis participants, is overwhelmingly female/afab, and probably has an unusually high number of survivors, not to mention relatively high awareness of social issues that impact them. The average audience member for a fanwork is therefore a very different one from that of a large-scale media release.

the vulnerability differential is widely different. Social power in fandom is mostly determined by popularity, but this is a very volatile source of power and can disappear in an instant. A single fanwork creator, therefore, is about the same level of vulnerable to a rumor, a callout, a complaint as everyone else in fandom (very). The vulnerability of a movie director, on the other hand, is relatively low. If hundreds of thousands of people rallied behind callouts and expressed their anger and hatred of a director, it probably won’t make any meaningful impact on their output or their personal life without outside factors.

So to use your example: You may be bothered by misogynistic content regardless of what you consume - fanwork or TV show or otherwise, but if you call it out in the TV show vs call it out in the fanwork, you’re going to have a very different impact level (not much on the TV show/its creators, but a lot on the fanwork/its creator).

Conversely, nonconsensual sex in a TV show reaches not only a much larger audience than a fanwork, but also a very different audience. For the TV show: a smaller percentage will have experienced sexual assault and the level of education about sexual assault will generally be lower. Also, unless the show explicitly warns for rape, it’s possible some people won’t even realize it’s noncon depending on how it’s portrayed - whereas fanwork ettiquette demands tagging and warnings. In other words, noncon portrayals in TV shows are more likely to send a damaging message than noncon portrayals in fic - fic, which has warnings on it, reaches a much smaller audience, and has an audience that is more likely to judge the content on personal experience and education than the TV show audience.**

Basically, it’s not contradictory to take a different tack of behavior to the same issue in different spheres, and it’s not contradictory to decide that you’re okay with content that is potentially damaging existing in some spaces but not in others. That’s putting your opinions and morals into context and changing how you act on them.

In fact, it’s downright important to do this. When you don’t change your response level or moderate your judgement in consideration of relative power and/or impact, the people who are the most likely to get run over are those who are at a disadvantage already: LGBT/queer people, black and brown people, immigrants, survivors, women, etc. Who is going to be more hurt and scared by people coming down hard on noncon fic: the rape survivor who wrote it for personal therapeutic value or the person who wrote it for titillation and fun? I bet you can guess.

the title of this blog is related to fanfic specifically because the hard stance I take on censorship is one I’m comfortable taking in the realm of fanworks, but I think the line - already a bit fuzzy at this low impact space - gets blurrier and blurrier the higher impact you go. Where does responsible depiction outweigh the freedom to portray? At what point does tolerating a fictional content become inappropriate? Where’s the line between fiction and propaganda?

These are all great questions to ask, but in the meantime, I’ll be down here saying that fanworks - lowest of low impact, plastered with warnings, and with the empowering effect of giving largely marginalized people a voice outweighing the danger of portrayals of immoral things - should always be free to exist.

**again you run into the issue that every fictional portrayal of something will have a unique interaction with every individual. What one person finds pornographic and harmful might be therapeutic to another. But with mass media the question of ‘does the message this sends amplify already-existing harmful opinions?’ becomes more important and ethical to ask.

#freedom vs censorship #context is key #rape mention #noncon mention #in defense of fanworks #in defense of tagging #in defense of darkfic #responsible critique

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the-desolated-quill · 7 years

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Oh Finn - Quill’s Scribbles

Believe it or not, I really don’t want to keep talking about Iron Fist. I honestly don’t give two shits either way at the moment. I wasn’t all that interested when I first heard about the show and when I heard about all the criticism it was getting, I just went ‘oh that’s a shame’ and just carried on with my day.

In fact, to my own surprise, I’ve kind of been acting like the voice of reason, trying to tell everybody to step back and get some perspective. I’ve already ranted about how hypocritical the critics are for saying how racist Iron Fist is whilst still pledging their support for Doctor Strange, a movie that’s committed far more heinous acts in its production than Iron Fist has. And I can’t help but give a disapproving stare to those Tumblr users out there who are using the same stick they used to beat Doctor Strange with to beat Iron Fist even though the circumstances for both are drastically different.

Let’s just go over the facts again. Unlike Doctor Strange, Iron Fist hasn’t whitewashed any Asian characters, the writers are attempting to depict Asian culture and they have also expressed an awareness of the many problems with the source material and have vowed to fix it. While yes, it’s disappointing that they didn’t pick an Asian actor for the role, as I seem to have to keep reminding people again and again, they’re not in any way obliged to do so. Iron Fist is canonically white. They could racebend the character if they wanted to, (and to their credit they did audition Asian actors for the role, so they were clearly open minded to the possibility), but if they want to go with the white guy, that’s their prerogative. Now the pressure is on them to make sure the character and the show doesn’t fall into the same traps as the comics.

The only crime Iron Fist has committed is that the writers thought they could have their cake and eat it too. They thought they had the skill and talent to make a show with a white Iron Fist that wasn’t racist and they apparently fucked it up. Would an Asian Iron Fist have solved all the problems? Not necessarily as some of the criticisms include rubbish fight scenes and a dull, plodding storyline. But other criticisms, such as the mighty whitey trope and the show’s lack of a unique identity, would have been addressed simply by racebending the lead.

That was my stance regarding the show. That could very well change if the show’s star, Finn Jones, doesn’t put a sock in it at some point over the next couple of days.

There are two ways to handle criticism. Quietly absorb everything that’s been said and consider bearing them in mind for future projects, or dismiss it all and angrily scream and shout into the void about how nobody can understand your genius. Finn Jones is very much in the latter. He’s been very vocal in his defence of the show, which is understandable to a certain extent. It’s never easy to hear criticism about something you’ve put a lot of hard work and effort into, especially when that criticism is overwhelmingly negative, but Finn Jones’ ‘defence’ displays an ignorant and borderline offensive attitude that I find quite appalling.

He started off with the usual trite defence (usually reserved as the DCEU’s go-to excuse) of that the show was made ‘for the fans.’ One teeny, tiny problem with that. The hardcore fans only represent a tiny portion of the viewership. It’s the casual viewers you have to pull in and if the show is as racially insensitive as some are suggesting, the casual viewers will twig it straight away. Also that’s a bit insulting to the fans, isn’t it? He’s basically implying that the fans should hold it to a lower standard than everyone else and should just be grateful for what they’ve got. David Ayer didn’t get away with that bullshit with Suicide Squad and we’re not falling for it now.

In an interview with the Metro UK, Finn Jones also said that the show wasn’t made for critics, saying that:

“…some of the reviews we saw were seeing the show through a very specific lens, and I think when the fans of the Marvel Netflix world and fans of the comic books view the show through the lens of just wanting to enjoy a superhero show, then they will really enjoy what they see”.

Okay first of all, what the fuck is he talking about? No show is made specifically for critics and of course they’re watching it through a particular lens. They’re critics. That’s what they do. They criticise. He’s basically angry because the critics have done what their job requires them to do. Second, that argument is total bullshit because if the problem is that the critics can’t sit back and enjoy a superhero show, how come they had no problem enjoying Daredevil, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage? What’s so special about Iron Fist that the critics don’t seem to get it? In fact the main criticism of the show is that it’s not special at all. That it’s actually derivative of a lot of better superhero properties out there at the moment. Which seems more likely Finn Jones? That critics can’t seem to wrap their head around a TV show that’s apparently so dull and uninspired that it seems to have borrowed a lot of its ideas from TV Tropes, or that your show is total rubbish?

Then of course there’s been the much publicised Twitter debate between Finn Jones and creative director Asyiqin Haron from Geeks Of Colour. He said that representation was important and that Iron Fist is socially progressive and celebratory of different cultures whilst remaining true to the source material. Haron responded by saying that an Asian Iron Fist would have made an even greater impact, and asked whether Finn Jones was even aware of how problematic a white Iron Fist potentially is. He responded by saying that the show explores those problematic elements and, when pressed further, he did the sensible and mature thing of deleting his Twitter account. Cue an onslaught of online hate accusing Haron of bullying even though all she did was ask some very blunt and pointed questions. She did not resort to foul language or personal attacks and by questioning him actually revealed how ignorant and hypocritical his thoughts on diversity were.

Jones eventually returned to Twitter and released the following statement:

“There is a huge benefit to engage and help shape conversations on social media, especially when it comes to giving a voice to social matters. My original intention was to amplify a speech made by Riz Ahmed at the House of Commons. It was a very articulate and important speech on representation that I wholly agreed with. After posting I was inundated by people accusing me of not being allowed to share his voice based on an assumption that our show is going to play into the problems of racial inequality on screen. I engaged politely, diplomatically and attempted to bridge the divide. I’m currently in the middle of filming and I need to stay focused on bringing to life this character without judgment, so I decided to remove myself from twitter for the time being.

I am very proud of the work everyone has done on this series and I’m excited for people to see how we’ve adapted the story. We have gone to great lengths to represent a diverse cast with an intelligent, socially progressive storyline. I hope people can watch the show before making judgments. In times, as divisive as these, we need to stay unified, compassionate and understanding in our differences.”

Yes. He just wanted to engage and help shape conversations on social media and was attempting to bridge the divide… only to then cut the conversation off entirely and thus strengthen the divide further because he couldn’t handle somebody questioning his progressive brilliance.

As the criticism continued, Jones started to become more and more vocal to the point where he even started to lose his cool. In an interview with Vulture, Jones claimed that people needed to ‘chill the fuck out’. How he doesn’t understand how people can be frustrated at something when they haven’t seen the product yet (ignoring the fact that the critics have already seen the product, hence the frustration), that Iron Fist is one of the most diverse shows he’s ever worked on and he doesn’t understand why it’s being picked on (again ignoring the fact that if he took the time to actually read the criticism instead of bitching like an infant, he’ll have realised that the critics have actually explained what the problems are on numerous occasions). When the interviewer attempted to move on from the subject, Jones said:

“C'mon, let’s get angry at the real fucking injustices in the world, yeah? The real problems in the world. Not just in television. There’s some real shit happening in the world right now that people need to get angry about. Let’s get angry about that. Not just a TV show that hasn’t even aired yet, you know?”

Ah that old chestnut. Look just because you don’t care about Asian representation in the media doesn’t mean we shouldn’t. For someone who claims to want to give voice to social matters, you certainly seem to spend a lot of time dismissing social matters the moment they’re voiced.

And just when you thought Finn Jones couldn’t sink any lower, in an interview with the RadioTimes, this happened:

“I’m playing a white American billionaire superhero, at a time when the white American billionaire archetype is public enemy number one, especially in the US. We filmed the show way before Trump’s election, and I think it’s very interesting to see how that perception, now that Trump’s in power, how it makes it very difficult to root for someone coming from white privilege, when that archetype is public enemy number one.”

Oh yeah. You’re reading this correctly. Apparently the reason why people don’t like Iron Fist is because of Donald Trump.

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Well this is a first. I never thought I’d be defending Donald Trump. As tempting as it is, you can’t blame him for all your problems sweetheart. Aside from the fact that nobody has expressed similar thoughts in response to Batman or Iron Man or even Arrow, and that the cry for an Asian Iron Fist started long before President Drumpf was elected, nobody has said nor has ever said that the white billionaire or even white people in general are ‘public enemy number one’. People are just understandably frustrated because it’s 2017 and they’re still having to fight tooth and nail for representation in the media. Yes Iron Fist is canonically white, but this could have been an opportunity to dispense with the white billionaire archetype altogether and have our first mainstream Asian superhero. That’s an opportunity you’ve robbed them of Finn Jones and it’s something you seem to be medically incapable of wrapping your head around. Regardless of our individual views on Trump, if you’ve gotten so desperate to defend your show that you’re blaming the President of the United States, you need a fucking time out.

Finn Jones is clearly in a state of rather aggressive denial, pointing the finger at everyone but the people responsible for this shitshow, namely the filmmakers. See up until now, I was prepared to extend an olive branch to Iron Fist. They seemed to have honest intentions and all it would have taken to get people back on their side was a simple apology a few months down the line and a promise to take the criticism onboard and fix the issues for Season 2 (assuming Season 2 is even going to happen after all of this). Instead Finn Jones is let off the leash and his delusional ramblings are at serious risk of damaging the show further. I’ve noticed that Marvel and the showrunner have kept deathly quiet about all of this. What am I supposed to read into that? Is Finn Jones’ pathetic excuses just the opinions of one ignorant prick or are they indicative of the entire BTS crew?

The more vocal Finn Jones gets, the more ignorant he’s shown to be and the more it hurts the show he’s trying to defend. He’s basically digging his own grave and pulling Iron Fist down on top of him. People like myself who were prepared to show sympathy are now starting to get turned off because if the lead star is this fucking deluded and clueless about the issues surrounding this show, maybe what the critics are saying have some weight to them after all.

So for your own sake, as well as the sake of Iron Fist and the fans that you claim to respect, do us all a favour Finn Jones.

SHUT THE FUCK UP!

#finn jones #iron fist #marvel cinematic universe #netflix #quill's scribbles

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justanothercinemaniac · 7 years

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Epic Movie (Re)Watch #113 - Groundhog Day

Spoilers Below

Have I seen it before: Yes

Did I like it then: Yes.

Do I remember it: Yes.

Did I see it in theaters: No.

Format: DVD

1) This film is a holiday classic associated with one of the less popular American holidays out there. Hell, this film probably made Feb. 2nd an even bigger deal than it was before.

2) The first thing we experience as an audience member of George Fenton’s quirky score over the opening credits. Fenton’s music I think is one of the more underrated aspects of the film as there is a lot of range to this particular score. There is the quirky comedy music, the kinda faster actiony stuff, but my favorite part is the romantic score featured in this film. You should give the soundtrack a listen if you have the opportunity, it’s pretty damn good.

3) Bill Murray as Phil Connors.

Director Harold Ramis, who frequently collaborated with Murray (mostly notably in the two Ghostbusters films) originally wanted Tom Hanks to play Phil but thought he was, “too nice,” and hired Murray instead. That’s great for us as the audience, because the role is one of Murray’s best. He is able to believably take us through this journey of character, playing the lovable but jerky Phil in the beginning with just as much believability as the guy who’s actually trying to do some good at the end. Murray’s improv is on full display with the film and that helps with the reality of his character.

Unfortunately, this would be the last film Murray and Ramis would collaborate on. An ongoing debate between whether the film should be more dramatic (Murray’s stance) or comedic (Ramis’ stance) was a contributing factor. As well as this, according to IMDb:

Bill Murray was undergoing a divorce at the time of filming and was obsessing about the film. He would ring Harold Ramis constantly, often in the early hours of the morning. Ramis eventually sent writer Danny Rubin to sit with Murray and iron out all his anxieties, one of the reasons why Murray stopped speaking to Ramis for several years.

I don’t know if they ironed out their issues before Ramis’ untimely death in 2014, but I hope so.

4) Chris Elliott as Larry.

This is probably Elliott’s most famous role, which is saying something considering he’s mostly the comedic camera man who’s tired of Phil’s bull. But Elliott’s performance makes it funny and memorable, delivering some of the best lines in the films (more on that later).

5) Andie Macdowell as Rita.

Rita is actually a character who is surprisingly well developed but in a lot of little ways, and I’ll elaborate more on that as I go. MacDowell is wonderful in the part, making Rita a positive upbeat person but believably so instead of just a “life force” character. She plays Rita (and it is written) with some flaws too which helps make her interesting, but again more on that later. Her biggest asset is probably that she can hold her own with Bill Murray in a scene. You can tell (or at least I can guess) in certain scenes that Murray is improvising and that MacDowell is sharp on her toes with a comeback. It makes their relationship a believable one. Especially considering there is a line later how Phil fell for Rita as soon as he saw her. You can sort of see that when you look for it. It’s small, but it’s there. A testament to both actors.

6) Although this film takes place in Punxsutawney, PA it was actually filmed in Woodstock, IL. I was there back in fall of 2015 and the town square where they filmed most of it is pretty much still the same. They even have a black on the corner where Bill Murray stepped into the really bad puddle. It was pretty cool. (Only this time however did I realize one of the signs style reads “Woodstock Jewelers”.)

7) Remember how I said Larry has some great lines/observations?

Phil [after Rita says she booked him a nice hotel]: “You know I think this is one of the traits of a really good producer: keep the talent happy.”

...

Larry [to Rita, after Phil has left]: “Did he just call himself the talent?”

8) “I Got You Babe”, the Sonny & Cher song that plays every morning when Phil wakes up, was the song that was in the very first draft of the script and carried through until the end. The song probably became more popular (or at least, popular for a longer time) BECAUSE of its use in this film.

9) Ned! Ryerson!

Like a lot of characters in this film, Ned Ryerson could have just been a throw away and forgettable little gag. This guy who supposedly knows Phil from high school and is an insurance agent now. But actor Stephen Tobolowsky totally MAKES this role. There’s nothing insincere about Ned. He doesn’t feel like a leech, he feels like an overly enthusiastic and genuine guy who’s absolutely hysterical. Tobolowsky plays Ned over the top in the tradition of Abbott & Costello and it works wonderfully!

Also Ned has the best lines.

Ned: “Am I right or am I right or am I right? Right? Right right right right!”

Ned: “Watch out for that first step there, it’s a DOOZEY!”

These lines on there own are not necessarily interesting but Tobolowsky just gives them such life it is a treat to watch.

10) This film has so many great lines.

Police Officer [when Phil is out in the street in a blizzard, trying to get to Pittsburg]: “Now you can go back to Punxsutawney, or you can freeze to death.”

[Phil takes a minute to stand in the snow. He looks back at Punxsutawney and then at the road ahead.]

Phil: “I’m thinking.”

11) There is never an explanation given as to why Phil is relieving Groundhog Day over and over again. I think in one draft of the script it was a spell cast by a jilted lover, but in the final film and for most drafts there’s no explanation. I think that’s the reason the film works so well. It’s not some Harry Potter fantasy. It’s just a comedy/drama with one fantasy element.

12) It’s fun rewatching this film again because you get to realize that characters who just have a throw away line earlier in the film end up being like Phil’s piano teacher or the drunks he meets a few Groundhog Days later.

13) I love that when Phil asks Rita for a good hard slap across the face she doesn’t hesitate and he’s not pissed about it. They’ve got each other. ;)

14) This line.

15) I like that Phil always goes to Rita for help with his Groundhog Day problem. She has no experience with this! There’s no reason for him to go to her with his problems other than he trusts her and respects her.

16) Hey look, it’s director Harold Ramis!

17)

Phil [to two drunks]: “What would you do if you were stuck in one place and nothing you did mattered?”

Drunk: “That about sums it up for me.”

18)

Phil [after one of the drunks decides not to drive and stumbles]: “You wanna throw up here or you wanna throw up in the car?”

Drunk: “I think...both.”

19)

Phil [while driving towards a train on train tracks]: “I’m betting he’s gonna swerve first.”

20) When Phil realizes his actions don’t have consequences the film gets fun real fast.

21) I find it a little pretentious that Rita’s reaction to this:

Is to quote a Sir Walter Scott poem at him which says he’s egotistical. Like, really? You’ve got this whole poem memorized JUST to call people egotistical? I mean I like it from a writing standpoint, it makes her kind of flawed, but also she comes off as pretentious. Not that she’s wrong, it’s just she’s very in your face with it.

22) The original plan for this film is that we as the audience would not see the start of the loop, instead just picking up on an “average” day and wondering how Phil knew the things he did. Harold Ramis promised he wouldn’t change this to the screenwriter but ended up changing it anyway (I think with the screenwriter’s blessing, but maybe not). I think this works better. It allows us to invest in Phil as a character more.

23) Phil’s attempts to seduce Rita - I think - start out with him trying to genuinely get to know her. He asks her about her life and only then goes down the route of, “Who’s your perfect guy?” I think he does have real feelings for her he just doesn’t know how to handle them in a healthy way so he uses this time loop to his advantage.

24) It’s interesting to see the repeated attempts of Phil trying to win over Rita, with each mistake done over until it’s not a mistake. You can tell that each time is a little less sincere, and the times when they connect the most are typically when he’s being honest with her and just letting things happen.

25) Another flaw of Rita’s:

Rita: “What should we drink to?”

Phil: “To the groundhog!”

Rita: “I always drink to world peace.”

THEN WHY THE HELL DID YOU ASK HIM WHAT YOU SHOULD DRINK TO!?!? I like it, it fleshes out her character, but it’s an annoying thing to find in a real person (and I know men and women who act like this).

26) I have so many questions.

Rita [on her ???? date with Phil]: “Do you ever have deja vu?”

Phil: “Did you just ask me that?”

This is the only time we EVER have another character show a hint of someone being aware of something is going on. WHY RITA!?!? WHY NOW!?!? WHAT IS HAPPENING!?!?!?

27) The best example of what I was talking about in note 24 is the snowball fight Phil & Rita have with the kids. Phil didn’t know that was going to happen, he didn’t know what Rita was going to say, that’s the first time he ever got that far. And he’s being honest with her! It’s such a nice scene between the two of them. And then when he tries to recreate it the next Groundhog Day it feels super awkward, incredibly forced, and wildly uncomfortable.

28) I think this is such an incredibly important concept.

Phil [after Rita says he’ll never love anything because he only loves himself]: “That’s not true! I don’t even LIKE myself!”

Keeping this in mind as Phil begins his downward spiral tells you A LOT about his character. And it’s that downward spiral that pushes this film from fun comedy to great movie.

29) And you thought this would be a light hearted comedy!

Phil: “I’ll give you a winter prediction. It’s gonna be cold. It’s gonna be gray. And it’s gonna last you the rest of your life.”

30) At one point Phil throws his radio on the ground and the speaker/song is still going.

According to IMDb:

The scene where Phil picks up the alarm clock and slams it onto the floor didn't go as planned. Bill Murray slammed down the clock but it barely broke, so the crew bashed it with a hammer to give it the really smashed look. The clock actually continued playing the song like in the movie.

31) The entire scene with the car chase and the quarry, where Phil kidnaps the groundhog and attempts suicide (which is a more entertaining scene than it sounds), is very well done. It shows just how desperate Phil is to end this nightmare. And it also gave us some pretty great lines.

Larry [after Phil drives into the quarry and the car crashes]: “He might be okay. (Car explodes) Well no, probably not now.”

32) The montage of Phil’s attempts at suicide is good for two reason: it gets across where he is at this point in the film, and it’s short. If it were too long this scene would get too depressing too fast.

33) I love this fucking scene.

Phil has relieved the same day over and over again for what has probably been years and he’s so damn tired he just wants to talk to someone about it. So what does he do? He goes to Rita. He tries to convince Rita and succeeds wonderfully. This scene is a prime example of this film’s beating heart, of why it’s a great feel good movie. Phil knows everybody! He knows all their stories, their names, everything about them, because he’s been living the same day over and over again. It’s wonderful. Even without trying it all just sinks in. And guess what? He knows Rita the best.

Phil: “You like boats but not the ocean. You go to a lake in the summer with your family up in the mountains. There's a long wooden dock and a boathouse with boards missing from the roof, and a place you used to crawl underneath to be alone. You're a sucker for French poetry and rhinestones. You're very generous. You're kind to strangers and children, and when you stand in the snow you look like an angel.”

THIS is why I love this film! This emotion! This heart! And there is a beautiful piece of score on the soundtrack called, “You Like Boats But Not The Ocean,” which sums those feelings up perfectly in music and I love that too! Everything about this just makes me feel good! Also how strange and insightful a little detail about Rita like, “you like boats but not the ocean,” is!

34) And so begins the good Phil tour. The amazing final act of the film where Rita has convinced Phil that he can maybe do some good with this “curse” of his and which carries the same wonderful emotion that was present in the diner scene where Phil convinces Rita he’s serious.

35) Bill Murray improvised this:

Phil [after Ned comes up to meet him and he hugs Ned]: “I don’t know where you’re going but can you call in sick?”

36) But even as Phil works to helps people’s life, he can’t save everyone.

This old homeless man is someone who Phil passes everyday and, when he starts acting kind, gives a ton of money to everyday. Towards the end of the film Phil meets the man and takes him to the hospital where he dies. So the next day Phil tries to save him. He takes him to a restaurant, gives him a big meal, and the man still dies. The man dies everyday. And that scene is heartbreaking and adds such weight to the film and I love how sad it makes me every single time.

I wish I were this kind, but honestly I’m scared to be. I’m scared to be taken advantage of but there are people out there who need help and hopefully I’ll be better about giving it in the future.

37) If you pay attention to the people in the background at the hospital you’ll see this kid:

Remember that kid. You only notice him when you’ve watched the film ten times (that’s not a hyperbole either), but remember him.

38) The final Groundhog Day is a wonderful thing to behold. It starts with us hearing the end of Phil’s report on the groundhog.

Phil: “When Chekhov saw the long winter, he saw a winter bleak and dark and bereft of hope. Yet we know that winter is just another step in the cycle of life. Put standing here amongst the people of Punxsutawney, and basking in the warmth of their hearts and hearths, I couldn’t imagine a better fate than a long and lustrous winter. From Punxsutawney, it’s Phil Connors. So long.”

And EVERYONE is paying attention to it, hell rival news networks are recording it! It’s THAT moving!

39) Do you remember the kid?

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Continuity! (Boom)

40) The final party is a great scene too. It’s the culmination of probably Phil’s best Groundhog Day yet. He helped as many people as he could and even plays for their pleasure at the party. It is his least selfish and the only time in the film we ever see the party, even though it was happening every single night. And also Rita spends $300+ to win Phil in a bachelor auction when the highest bid before that was $60.

41) Kneel before Zod!

42) I love this.

Phil [after ice sculpting Rita]: “I know your face so well I could’ve done it with my eyes closed.”

43) And then tomorrow finally happens.

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A great end to a great film.

Groundhog Day is just amazing. It has a heartwarming story, a feel good vibe, an intriguing concept, and a wonderful cast. It is just so good for so many different reasons and if you haven’t seen it yet you should. Right now.

#Groundhog Day #Bill Murray #Andie Macdowell #Harold Ramis #Chris Elliott #Epic Movie (Re)Watch #Movie #Film #GIF

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cinephiled-com · 7 years

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New Post has been published on Cinephiled

New Post has been published on http://www.cinephiled.com/interview-iranian-director-asghar-farhadi-oscar-nominated-salesman/

Interview: Iranian Director Asghar Farhadi on His Oscar-Nominated ‘The Salesman’

When they are forced to move out of their flat, Emad (Shahab Hosseini) and Rana (Taraneh Alidoosti), a young couple living in Tehran, are forced to move into a new apartment. However, once relocated, a sudden violent act, somehow linked to the apartment’s previous tenant, dramatically changes the couple’s life, creating a simmering tension between them, even as the acting couple prepares to star in an Iranian production of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. Writer/Director Asghar Farhadi (A Separation, The Past), a master at exposing domestic discord through his multi-layered films, explores the psychology of vengeance and a relationship put under strain in his powerful new film, The Salesman (Forushande). Time magazine named 44 year-old Asghar Farhadi one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world in 2012, after his film, A Separation, won the Oscar and Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, as well as numerous other awards. The Salesman is his seventh feature. I sat down with Farhadi and his translator in Los Angeles.

Danny Miller: Your films are all so original — sometimes shockingly so. Did you start with the idea of contrasting what this couple is going through with the production of Death of a Salesman that they’re performing in, or did that idea come to you later?

Asghar Farhadi: For a long time I’ve been wanting to make a film that had something to do with the theater. I started with the basic idea of a couple working on a play and then something happens in their lives that prevents them from appearing on stage.

How did you end up choosing Death of a Salesman?

I read a bunch of plays when I was trying to come up with what this couple was working on. I read a great number of plays until I got to Death of a Salesman. I had read it 20 years earlier, but after rereading it I knew this was what I had to use. There are so many connections between this play and my story. For example, the old man we see at the end of the film with his wife is basically an Iranian Willy Loman. I started to see the play as a kind of a mirror to the story that happens to my main characters. The main thing that my story and the play have in common is the theme of humiliation.

Is playwright Arthur Miller well known in Iran? Was that an existing translation of Death of a Salesman or one you created for the film?

Arthur Miller is very well known in my country. Every few years there are new translations of Miller’s play available in Iran. I think the last Arthur Miller production I heard about in Iran was a year ago — there are several production of American plays in Iran every year, they are very relevant to us and important.

Your two leads, played by Shahab Hosseini and Taraneh Alidoosti, give such extraordinary performances in this film. Hosseini is amazing but I can’t stop thinking about Alidoosti’s quiet and complex portrayal — so many layers. What’s your style with working with your actors — do they participate a lot in developing their characters?

I work a great deal with some of my actors, with others less so. I’ve worked with Shahab on several films so we’ve come to know each other’s language. We did have a great deal of rehearsal for this film but it might interest you to know that the main thing I worked with them on was playing the parts of Willy and Linda Loman. It mattered very much to me that they should appear like real theater actors. The person I probably worked with the most was the actor who plays the old man who comes in at the end of the film. This character could have been the Achilles heel of my film — his acting had to be just right. What’s important for me is that audiences watch my films and feel like they’re seeing life. I always tell my actors to imagine that they are in a documentary!

Our two countries have had a complex relationship, God knows, including now. Another thing that I love about your movies is that it gives more Americans the chance to see Iranian characters who are 100% relatable and living lives so similar to our own. When you’re making your movies, do you consciously think about how they might be perceived in other countries?

Yes, I am always aware of this but the reason I make films is never to demonstrate that we are like other people. In my opinion it’s certain politicians and the media that have constructed this erroneous image. And there’s certainly a segment of the Iranian population who may have erroneous impressions about Americans. When you look at these two peoples through the lens of politics, you end up with a very one-dimensional perspective. But it’s very interesting — in terms of emotionality, I find that Iranians and Americans really resemble each other.

As much as I completely related to this film and these characters, do you think there might be things about the story that we don’t get the same way because of differences in our cultures?

It’s possible that certain audiences may see some things as palpably as Iranian audiences. The sense of shame is something that is present for humans everywhere, but I feel that in my country and in some other countries in the East, it’s stronger. So, for instance, when the woman doesn’t directly explain to her husband what happened in the bathroom, I think it’s something that may be more understandable to an Iranian audience than it is to an American audience.

Oh, that’s so interesting. I think that many of us may understand that scene but in a totally different way — using our awareness of how trauma can close people down emotionally, but not as a cultural thing. Another thing that I love about your movies is that there’s never a black and white good versus bad, all the characters are way more complex than that. When you go to screenings around the world, do you get different reactions related to the morality of what’s happening in the story?

The feedback I’ve received in America and Iran is very similar. There are also some differences in opinion with both audiences. In American and Iran, some audience members judge the main character for his desire for revenge and in the moment that he slaps the other man. But some people in both countries say that’s the very least he should have done. But I found in Europe, for example, most of the people in the audience were completely against the slap.

Fascinating!

That’s partly why I’m saying that Iranians and Americans perhaps resemble each other more in terms of their emotions, I often have very similar reactions to my films in both countries as opposed to other parts of the world.

I first saw the film just before our recent election and since then I’ve been thinking about it differently, including the whole Willy Loman ethic that’s going on that led to our current situation. Coming from a country where I assume you’ve had similar issues with your government, do you have any advice for those of us now who are in disagreement with where we’re headed?

There’s only one way for the world to become a better place — and that is for humanity to be placed at the very top and for everything else to be placed below it. Without that, the world will never be a good place. When ideology is at the top of the pyramid and then humanity, the first thing that happens is that it divides the people into two distinct camps: Muslims and non-Muslims, Christians and non-Christians, and so on. Or imagine that politics is at the top and humans are beneath that. That will again start dividing people into camps: Americans, Mexicans, Iranians, Blacks, Whites, Immigrants, etc. I think that all of our struggles should be working to place humanity at the top of the pyramid.

And a great way to do that is through art. I hope that filmmakers like you continue to help us get out of our polarized stances a little bit and look at human issues that cross all barriers.

I hope that the this period ends up being a positive, beneficial experience for American society as it tries to become acquainted with itself.

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The Salesman is now playing in selected cities. It is one of five films nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award but as of this morning, there was much doubt that Asghar Farhadi would be allowed to attend the awards because of the executive order that the President signed yesterday.

#Academy Awards #Asghar Farhadi #Shahab Hosseini #Taraneh Alidoosti #The Salesman #Interviews #What's Hot

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“I have seen it all, I did it all, I said it all, But I can’t remember it all…”

That’s how our Lifetime Achievement Winner, Moushumi Chatterjee defines her four-decade-old journey. “I don’t consider anyone bad. It’s the situation that makes people do things. You may hurt someone unintentionally. But you must never humiliate anyone,” says the actor who continues to throw up interesting performances. In 2014, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for the Bengali film Goynar Baksho and now the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award 2015. “I wish my father-in-law (the late musician/filmmaker Hemant Kumar) was present to see me receive this honour,” she says. In the recent hit Piku, she impressed with her brazen candour on sexuality. What’s more she was pitted against Amitabh Bachchan, her co-star in Basu Chatterjee’s quaint film Manzil (1979), remembered for its RD Burman number Rimjhim gire saawan. “Amitji possesses the same dedication. His sense of humour is intact,” she says. “Rimjhim gire was shot over two days in natural light and rain… from Colaba, VT to Marine Drive. I remember my eyeliner getting smudged! We kept having coffee to keep ourselves warm,” she reminisces.

Child bride The reluctant star of Tarun Mazumdar’s Ballika Badhu (1965) never imagined that fiction would turn into the truth of her life. “I did Ballika Badhu when I was in the fifth standard. I got married when I was in the tenth,” recalls she. Young Indira (her real name) got engaged to‘guardian and neighbour’ Hemant Kumar’s son, Jayant Mukherjee (Babu). “I fell in love with Babu. He was the first man I came in touch with outside my family. In my dowry, came a dog, a doll’s house and a friend, my girl Friday,” she laughs.

The teen bride had already seen in Bengali films like Parineeta, Anindita and Anand Ashram. She came to Mumbai with husband Babu only to have film offers lined-up for her. Raj Khosla’s Kachche Dhaage was her first film, though Shakti Samanta’s Anuraag, where she played a visually-challenged girl released first in 1973. The next year saw her team up with Amitabh Bachchan in the thriller Benaam and opposite Rajesh Khanna in Humshakal. Her most notable performance was that of a rape survivor in Manoj Kumar’s Roti Kapada Aur Makaan (1974). “I was pregnant with my first child but Manojji took great care of me. I threw up with all the atta (flour) in my mouth. A duplicate blouse was placed on me, which was later flung aside for the scene.” She claims, “The song Hai hai yeh majboori was to be filmed on me. But I got pregnant. The phrase‘do takiya’ in the song matches my character Tulsi’s language not that of the sophisticated Zeenat Aman’s in the film.”

Her other successful films were Swarg Narak and Angoor with Sanjeev Kumar. The hat-trick of hits Maang Baro Sajna, Ghar Ek Mandir and Pet Pyaar Aur Paap put her in the big league in 1984. Later, she graduated to doing character roles in Ghayal, Ghar Parivaar and Udhaar Ki Zindagi. Ask Moushumi to analyse her appeal and she says self-effacingly, “I’ve a crooked nose. I’m slightly cock-eyed. Perhaps my smile, my laughter charmed. Also, I had a voluptuous figure. I was never skinny. Actually, sex-appeal lies in your face, your eyes. Having a great figure doesn’t matter.” She recalls how the late director Raj Khosla summed her up. “He said, “Moushumi’s childlike, not childish. She can be fun-loving like an eight-year-old and wise like a woman of 80.”

Will break, not bend In an industry, which has not been entirely kind to married actresses, Moushumi finds herself grateful. “Mahesh Bhatt once chided me for being ‘unprofessional’. He joked, ‘Every time your career is doing well, you get pregnant’. I replied, ‘My babies have added to my life’.’You can be a top star, a celebrity or even a queen but ultimately you need a family, a home.” What she does admit to is her ‘will break but not bend’ dictum, which became the reason of her walking out of big projects. “I was not the ambitious kind, who wanted work by hook or crook. I did films on my own terms. I even shot for some big banner films but left them after a few days because my ethics didn’t allow me to continue. I didn’t compromise my sanskar. They thought I was stubborn and crazy.”

Rumours of being ‘uncooperative’ plagued her career. “Some top heroes could not take my behaviour. They’d say, ‘You prefer to talk to the spot boy rather than have a cup of coffee with me. Do you think you’re Vyjayanthimala? I’d say, ‘No, I believe I’m Cleopatra’. Some, noticing my stance, would turn respectful, some indifferent.” She recalls the time when a senior actress gave her some ‘advice’. “She said, ‘Why don’t you open up? You rub them the wrong way. What’s the harm in having dinner with them on outdoors?’” She holds her heroes Vinod Khanna, Rishi Kapoor, Shashi Kapoor, Sanjeev Kumar and Dharmendra in high regard. “Once Dharamji happened to see me at a particular party. He said, ‘Why have you come here? Go home right now!’ Rishi was helpful when I was pregnant and shooting for Zehreela Insaan. While Sanjeev Kumar loved to relax at my house, enjoying non-vegetarian food and watching films.”

My home, my world While showbiz wanted more of her, all she wanted was to rush back home. “I could switch from being Moushumi to Indu very easily. The minute pack-up was announced I wanted to run home to my husband. Even after Payal was born, I’d want to see Babu first.” In fact, the foundation of their bond, she says, was formed in those early years. She was a minor when her first daughter Payal was born. “My gynaecologist told me ‘a kid is having a kid’. When Payal was born, I didn’t have patience. She’d break my toys; I’d want to break hers.” She had Megha at 24 and didn’t work for two years as she was a weak child. “But the moment I thought of returning, I got four offers including Watan Ke Rakhwale, Aag Hi Aag and Ghayal,” says she.

Her ingenuousness remained intact even after motherhood and that’s why perhaps Dharmendra signed her for his production Ghayal. “I wasn’t interested. I suggested other heroines. But he said, ‘Kudiye, none can match your inocence. You can make the audience ghayal with your pain’.” She owes the liberty she enjoyed to her husband. “Babu was well off. He wasn’t living off me. He trusted me. My life has been an open book. Yes, he was possessive about certain things. Like once when I wore a sleeveless blouse, he didn’t like it. He said, ‘Have you forgotten to wear a blouse?’” she laughs.

LINK-UPS & LIES Though she was a married actress, rumours of romantic liaisons didn’t spare her. She was linked to various heroes including the late Vinod Mehra and Farooque Sheikh and distributor Ramesh Sippy. With Vinod Mehra she did around 10 films including Anuraag, Us-Paar, Raftaar, Umar Qaid and Zindagi and that set the grapevine buzzing. “Vinod and Babu were close friends. We lived in the same building. So we often went out together. That gave rise to rumours.” She doesn’t deny her outgoing disposition. “I am a flirt. I can flirt even with a plant, with an animal. In fact, Shabana Azmi once said, ‘Shashi Kapoor and you can flirt with anyone from six to 60,” she titters. But she’s aware of the perils of a friendly disposition. “The way I show my warmth is misconstrued. Babu once told me, ‘You’re a heroine. People view you differently. Be careful’. But he also jokes that even on my death bed I will flirt with the doctor.”

On a serious note she explains, “I never reacted to rumours. Those close to me knew, where I was and with whom. My husband was with me. Yes, I committed mistakes.” She reflects, “I realised Moushumi Chatterjee had many admirers. There were people who said, ‘I love you’ and even those who said, ‘I want to marry you’. I couldn’t push them away or be rude. I gave them enough time and also to myself to understand that they were attracted to me and not in love with me. I respect them. I even respect their spouses who also went through a bad time.” She’s still a ‘romantic’ but her definition of love has changed. “Love is an illusion. It’s at best attraction and attachment. Gradually, you move on to other things, your emotions are channelised into your children, your work…”

Golden time Glamour is short-lived and what lasts is the halo of contentment. “I’ve seen actresses go haywire. I committed a lot of mistakes too. But once I realised them, I took a U turn and never looked back. Your lifestyle is important. If you abuse life, life will abuse you back. Actresses turn lonely because they don’t listen to the voice within.” She insists on being spiritual. “I’m a Hindu but I perform namaz. I visit the church. You can reach God by touching human beings. You come alone and go alone. I take pleasure in simple things, like cooking and being with my children. And of course getting into arguments with husband Jayant. “Babu merely listens, unless I provoke him. We share a great sense of humour. Like when I say, ‘Gala dukh raha hai (my throat is hurting)’, he shoots back, ‘Daba doon (shall I press it)?’”

Moushumi Chatterjee’s best works

Balika Badhu (1967)

An adolescent Moushumi was about endearing innocence as a child-bride in Tarun Majumdar’s Bengali drama. It was later remade in Hindi with Sachin Pilgaonkar and Rajni Sharma in the lead.

Parineeta (1969)

The many adaptations of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s Parineeta include Moushumi’s take as a young woman’s unflinching devotion to her childhood sweetheart. This was directed by Ajoy Kar. It featured Samit Bhanja, Bijon Bhattacharya and Khagesh Chakravarti

Anuraag (1972)

A blind girl befriends a terminally ill child. The tragedy turns into a tale of hope and love in the Shakti Samanta directorial.

Kuchhe Dhaage (1973)

Moushumi’s village belle act was the perfect foil to the machismo dripping portrayals of Vinod Khanna and Kabir Bedi. Mere bachpan tu jaa… had an uncanny real-life echo to Moushumi’s own evolution.

Zehreela Insaan (1974)

Best remembered for the chartbuster O Hansini and Rishi Kapoor’s emotional confusion. Moushumi matched his intensity with her innocence and ease.

Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974)

Manoj Kumar’s war cry against corruption featured Moushumi in a ghastly rape sequence. She was apparently pregnant then but carried off the scene with elan.

Benaam (1974)

Both Moushumi and Amitabh Bachchan share great chemistry as a married couple. Their paradise is lost once their son goes missing.

Manzil (1979)

Basu Chatterjee’s Manzil not only gave us the rain-drenched panorama of Mumbai’s bay-line but also the monsoon ode Rimjhim gire sawan filmed on Amitabh Bachchan and Moushumi.

Swayamvar (1980)

Moushumi was all fire and sweet tantrums as Shashi Kapoor’s demanding ladylove in Swayamvar.

Pyaasa Saawan (1981)

Sexy and sentimental, Moushumi played the perfect wife in this melodrama. She won appreciation and sympathy as Jeetendra’s ailing wife here.

Angoor (1982)

Gulzar’s comedy of errors worked on a low-key sense of humour. Moushumi’s distrustful, daft, housewife act was perfect for the character.

Ghayal (1990)

As Sunny Deol’s grief-ridden sister-in-law in Ghayal, she provided a gravitas to her performance.

Moushumi’s most-loved melodies

· Sun ri pawan pawan puriya – Anuraag (1973)

· Tere nainon ke main deep jalaaonga – Anuraag (1973)

· hansini – Zehreela Insaan (1974)

· Mehngai maar gayee – Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974)

· Vado karo janam – Sabse Bada Rupaiya (1976)

· Rimjhim gire sawan – Manzil (1979)

· Wada nahin karte kisi se – Prem Bandhan (1979)

· Mausam pe jawani hai – Do Premee (1980)

· Yun na rootho – Itni Si Baat (1981)

· Megha re megha re – Pyaasa Sawan (1981)

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